“Go find someone else to bug, pickle nose. I need to find Devin anyway and give report.” He shoved his hands in his pockets, and she brushed a sisterly kiss on his cheek.
“Fine, but if you need me, call me. I don’t like being left out of something so serious, and please consider telling Mom and Dad soon. They will be hurt if you don’t,” she said, and she sashayed away from him into the woods.
He watched her walk away and realized that he did feel a little bit better after talking to Whitney about Tina. His sister was as protective of him as he was of her, and he allowed himself to briefly wonder when she would take a mate. A red haze filled his vision at the thought of some imaginary man touching his baby sister, and a growl escaped his throat. That was the last thing he needed to have on his brain right now. Stripping out of his jeans, he looped them around his neck and shifted. Once he was in his wolf form he took off running to find Devin. He needed to clear up business, and then maybe he would go out tonight. Cutting loose and having a few drinks was exactly what he needed right now.
Liam found Devin on the front porch of the Alpha’s house. Devin sat on a porch swing with Caroline in his lap, and Damon beside them. They were all talking quietly, and he could see from a few feet away that Caroline was blushing.
“Hmmm…Do I even want to ask what you three are talking about?” he asked loudly, and Caroline’s head shot up. The glassy expression in her eyes told him that he had guessed right and that the conversation was private and probably X-rated.
“Oh my God, Liam, you startled me. Shouldn’t I have stronger senses now that I’m a wolf?” she snapped, and turned to glare at Devin and Damon. The two men just smirked back, delighted with her reaction.
“Eventually, but you have to learn how to use them, and it’s not likely you would have noticed him with the two of us distracting you.” Damon replied and turned back to Liam. “How was your patrol, Liam?”
“I just wanted to report that I have nothing to report. Not a thing, actually. Twelve hours of boring peacefulness at the den. Of course that was before I realized that there was a fire being started on the front porch of the Alpha’s house.” He winked at Caroline’s blush and laughed.
A low growl came from Devin, but Caroline laughed back.
“Not yet, but they definitely started a spark,” she joked, and then she shifted off of Devin’s lap and stood. “Why are you patrolling the den?” she asked Liam curiously.
Liam’s eyes shot to Devin’s seeking permission to explain. After his Alpha nodded, he spoke to Caroline, “We’ve had reports of someone poaching in the woods, between our land and the woods around the lake. The poacher got a wolf several days ago. Thankfully it wasn’t one of ours, but we can’t be too cautious with somebody roaming the woods with a loaded rifle.”
Caroline was quiet for a few moments as she processed the information, and then she nodded in agreement. “I hope you guys are able to track them down before anyone gets hurt. How are you and Tina doing?”
“We’re not. I haven’t talked to her since she left my place the other night,” he said and glanced guiltily away when Caroline glared at him.
“What? You screwed her and then left her?” she screeched angrily.
“What?
No
! She left me. I’m not into forcing a woman into my bed. She came willingly, but afterward she had second thoughts. She doesn’t want me, Caroline,” he shouted back, but he immediately calmed a couple of pegs when Devin and Damon both snarled at him, baring their teeth. He should know better than to yell at his Alpha’s mate.
“Oh, she wants you all right, but she needs a man, not a boy. Why wouldn’t you call her if you want her? I thought she was your mate?” Caroline was furious with him, and Liam felt ashamed that the Alpha-bitch of the pack would think less of him.
“She definitely is my mate, but being human, she doesn’t feel the mating bond like I do. I didn’t claim her because she told me she didn’t want me to, right before she got in cab and ran away from me,” he mumbled.
“So being told no has kept you from charming a woman you wanted before? Before you freak out, I’m not accusing you of forcing anyone! I’m actually complimenting your skills with the female population.” She paused. “But I am disappointed in you, Liam. I gave you credit for being a much stronger man than that,” she said and crossed her arms angrily.
“I don’t want a mate, damn it,” he said. Caroline’s face registered surprise, and the silence was deafening. Liam stared off into the woods sadly, refusing to see the pity on the men’s faces.
Finally Devin spoke. “Liam, I know you’ve been through a lot, but you can’t fight fate. If she is your mate, then you have to claim her, or your wolf will drive you insane.”
“I won’t force her,” Liam responded quietly.
“Of course not, and I’m not telling you to force her. I tried to push Caroline into accepting our mating before she understood what it meant, and look what happened. I’m just saying you are going to have to let her get to know you. The more time you two spend together, the stronger the mating bond will be, and the easier it will be to convince her,” Devin said.
“I know you carry some pain inside of you, Liam, but Tina has been through some hard times, too. I won’t share her story for her, because she needs some time to build trust with you. She may talk a big game, but I think it’s to cover up how self-conscious she actually is. She loves flowers, and dancing, and she eats dinner. Can’t you try dating her until she’s ready?” Caroline pleaded.
“I don’t even have her number, Princess. When she took off the other night she was pretty steamed at me, and I didn’t think it was a good idea to ask for it,” he said with a dejected shrug.
“If Tina was that mad at you, then she wouldn’t answer the phone anyway. She’s pretty stubborn when she wants to be, but I saw the sparks between you guys. You’ve had her attention since the first conversation you had with her on the phone. I know she wants you, even if she won’t say it out loud. Let me set something up so that you guys can accidentally run into each other. That way she has to spend some more time with you, and you can plead your case.” Caroline grinned conspiratorially. “I know how well you wolves…
talk
…so I can only imagine how she will respond to you.”
All three guys laughed at that, and Liam actually felt a little better. If he had Caroline on his side, then surely it was just a matter of time until Tina saw him the way he saw her.
“I would appreciate the help. What are you thinking?” he asked.
“Let’s all go out tonight. That bar that you guys took me to? Where Cash sings?” She turned to Damon.
“Rustlers?” Damon asked.
“Yeah, Tina is a dancer. There is nothing in the world she loves more than to dance, so I’ll call her and ask her to come out with me and the guys. You just show up and work your magic.” She looked very pleased with herself.
“I was thinking about going out tonight anyway. Cash is singing, so I’ll be there,” he said, smiling back at his Alpha’s mate.
“Perfect! It’s a date!” She laughed, choking it off when she saw the irritation on the twin’s faces. “Not for me, damn it! For Tina and Liam! You two sexy beasts are going to take me out tonight and dance with me until I’m ready to drop, and then you can bring me home and…well…I’ll just let you imagine the next part,” she said as she ran a hand down Devin’s and then Damon’s chest, and they both flushed a little.
“Definitely, sugar.” Devin whispered to her in a husky voice. A wave of envy went through Liam, and he wondered if he and Tina would ever find that kind of comfort and intimacy.
“Perfect, I need to change into something more comfortable, and take a short nap I think. I need my rest for tonight. Don’t keep me waiting too long.” Caroline kissed both of her mates gently, and Liam almost groaned out loud when he saw her lick Devin’s bottom lip before she went into the house. Caroline Trainor-soon-to-be-Gray was a sexy woman, and she had his Alphas wrapped around her little finger with her smile.
“It looks like she’s recovered from her ordeal,” he said to get the twins attention as they watched their mate walk away.
“Yeah, she’s still having nightmares, but her injuries have healed completely,” Devin responded.
“I’m glad to hear it. She’s going to be a good Alpha-bitch,” Liam said and both of the twins laughed.
“Don’t let her hear you call her that. She thinks that term is a terrible insult. She prefers Alpha’s mate, and I strongly suggest you stick with that,” Damon said, laughing.
“Gotcha. I guess coming from a human way of thinking, that wouldn’t be the best title to have. So if it’s not too personal, how did you guys explain the mating bond to her?” He settled onto the porch railing across from the two men.
“It wasn’t the easiest thing to do, trust me. As a human, her way of thinking is completely backward from ours as wolves. The idea of a ménage relationship didn’t bother her as much as the idea that we wanted her to marry us after such a brief relationship and become a wolf, too. She thought we wanted a woman to warm our bed, pop out some babies, and take care of our home. She was afraid we were going to ask her to give up her career as a nurse and then leave her alone at home while we went about our regular lives,” Damon explained.
“We’ve definitely stumbled our way through this relationship, but it really came down to the love we have for her and that she has for us. The mating bond was there in a physical sense, from the moment we met, but we had to work for the intimacy and let her fall in love with us personally. We wouldn’t have ever been able to walk away from her completely, but if what made her the happiest was not being with us, then we would have loved her from a distance,” Devin said softly.
“Does she understand now that you don’t want her to become someone else?” Liam asked.
“Yeah, she said she would take two weeks off to make sure she’s healed, and then she is going back to work. Truthfully, I am glad she feels strong enough in our relationship to tell us what she needs. She has trust issues, and her parents died in the World Trade Center attack. She struggles still with her grief sometimes, so we have to keep reassuring her that we aren’t going anywhere,” Devin said. “Given the right amount of time and encouragement, Tina will come around, too.”
“I don’t know about that. She’s a spitfire, and she has strong opinions about what she wants in life. Right now she says that is definitely not me. It hurts, and my wolf is going nuts to claim her,” Liam said with an exasperated groan.
“Don’t fight your attraction to her, but you have to move slowly. I wish that Dev and I would have given Caroline a little more time to adjust before we claimed her. Maybe then the whole thing with Barton wouldn’t have happened the way it did. It doesn’t change anything though. I’m happier now than I’ve ever been,” Damon said.
“I can tell. You guys are always looking
satisfied
,” Liam teased, and both guys chuckled.
“Most definitely,” Damon said, looking every bit of the satisfied man. “In fact, I think I will go find some satisfaction right now. See you tonight, Liam!” He jumped up and, with a small wave, took off after Caroline.
“I’m sorry Liam, but I have a hot she-wolf waiting for me, so please excuse me. I will see you at Rustlers tonight,” Devin said, and he headed into the house.
Liam smiled at their haste and shook his head. He could only hope that someday soon he would have a hot she-wolf waiting for him, too. An image of a feisty brunette with long legs and fantastic breasts spread naked on his bed flashed through his mind, and his body hardened again. It was going to be a long day waiting to see her, and he just hoped he could get through to her this time.
Chapter 6
Ring… Ring… Ring…
“Tina?”
“Yeah?”
“Hey, it’s me.”
“Caroline?”
“Yep, are you okay, hon?”
“Not really. I kind of feel like I’ve been run over by a truck still, but I’m healing slowly.”
“I guess that’s to be expected after everything that happened.”
“How are you feeling, Caro? He hurt you a lot more than he hurt me.”
“Yeah, but I’m a werewolf now, T, so things heal a lot faster than they used to. I don’t even hardly have any bruises left. I’m still having the occasional bad dream, but I’m sure that will pass. Devin and Damon are taking good care of me. So, um…why did you run away from Liam’s?”
“Lord have mercy! How do you know about that? Did he go bragging to Devin and Damon about how he banged the easy girl within the first ten minutes of pulling into his driveway? Shit, I should have known he was a jerk.”
“He’s worried about you. Wait, the first ten minutes? God, you work fast, T! And he didn’t brag to anyone. I actually asked him about you guys. I was expecting to hear about how in love you were, but he said you ran away from him and wouldn’t give him a chance to explain anything.”
“I don’t want to talk to him.”
“You have to!”
“Why?”
“Well…ummm… you know I only want what’s best for you right? I mean, Liam is your mate, your soul mate. You guys are two halves of a whole.”
“So what does that make you and the twins? Thirty-three and a third of a whole?”